The Supreme Personality of Godhead Shri Krishna chose to appear in this Yadav dynasty.

Saturday, 15 October 2011

Yadav caste history & information

Yadav caste history & informationYadav or
Yadava is an ethnic caste which traces its descent from Yadu. Yadavas
have been mentioned as one of the ancient Vedic panchjanya tribes in
ancient Dharmic texts. They mostly follow Vaishnav traditions and
Dharmic religion and are located in different parts of India, Nepal, and
Bangladesh. Traditionally and they are classified under the Kshatriya
varna in Hinduism.

In Hindu mythology, Yadvas are described as the descendants of Yadu, the
eldest son of King Yayati. Yadu and his descendants ruled in places
that are referred to in the Hindu scriptures as Jambudvipa. According to
Dharmic mythology, Jarasandh, Kansa's father-in-law, and king of
Magadha attacked Yadavas to avenge the killing of Kansa which led
Yadavas to shift their capital from Mathura to Dwaraka.Abhira, which is considered to be a subgroup of Yadava caste today, is
assumed to be different from ancient Yadavas. Linkage is obscure and
views vary from scholar to scholar. The term was used for cowherds
initially but has been extended to include Yaduvanshis and Nandavanshis
too by its corrupt version Ahir. Abhira means "fearless" and appear in
most ancient historical references dating back to the Abhira kingdom of
the Saraswati Valley, who spoke Abhiri until the Buddhist period.
Analysis of Hindu scriptural references of the Abhira kingdoms has led
some scholars to conclude that it was merely a term used for Holy Yadava
Kingdoms. In Bhagavatam, the Gupta dynasty has been called Abhir.

Some historians also seek a connection between Yadavas and Jews.
According to their theory, the Greeks were referred to the Jews as
Judeos, or Jah deos or Yadavas, meaning people of Ya.Yadav as an Ethnic Category

Yadava is a category consisting of several allied castes which together
constitute about one-tenth of the total population of India. The castes
coming under this category are spread over in different parts of India,
Burma, Nepal and Sri Lanka and are known as the Ahir in the Punjab,
Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Bihar,
Gujarat and Rajasthan; the Goalas and Sadgopa in Bengal and Orissa;
Gavli and Gopala in Maharashtra; Golla in Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka
and Idayan and Konar in Tamil Nadu. There are also several sub-regional
names such as Thetwar and Rawat in Madhya Pradesh, and Mahakul (Great
Family) in Bihar.

Two things are common to these cognate castes. Firstly, they claim to be
the descendants of the Yadu Dynasty(Yadava) to which Lord Krishna
belonged. Secondly, many castes in this category have a set of
occupations centering round cattle. The Krishna mythology lends a kind
of legitimacy to the pastoral occupations relating to cattle, and as the
castes following these occupations are to be found in almost all parts
of India, the Yadava category encompasses a whole range of related
castes.Besides this mythical origin of the Yadavas, semi-historical and
historical evidence exists for equating the Ahirs with the Yadavas. It
is argued that the term Ahir comes from Abhira who were once found in
different parts of India, and who in several places wielded political
power. The Abhiras are equated with Ahirs, Gopas and Gollas, and all of
them are considered Yadavas.

It is also stated that the Allahabad iron pillar inscription of
Samudragupta (fourth century AD) mentions the Abhiras as one of the
tribal states of west and south west India. A fourth century AD
inscription found in Nashik speaks of an Abhira king and there is proof
that in the middle of the fourth century the Abhiras were settled in
eastern Rajputana and Malwa. Similarly, when the Kathis arrived in
Gujarat in the eighth century, they found the greater part of the
country in the possession of the Ahirs. The Mirzapur district of the
United Provinces has a tract known as Ahraura, named after the Ahir and
another piece of country near Jhansi was called Ahirwar. The Ahirs were
also kings of Nepal at the beginning of the Christian era. Khandesh and
the Tapti valley were other regions where they were kings. The Gavlis
rose to political power in Deogarh, on the Chhindwara Plateau in the
central provinces. The Saugar traditions traced down the Gavli supremacy
to a much later date, as the tracts of Etawa and Khurai are said to
have been governed by the chieftains till the close of the seventeenth
century.

Some scholars, such as Robert Sewell believe that the rulers of
Vijayanagara Empire were Kurubas (also known as Yadavas). Many ruling
Rajput clans of India traced their origin to the Yaduvanshi lineage, a
major branch of the Chandravanshi Kshatriyas. These include the
Banaphars and the Jadejas. The Seuna Yadavas of Devagiri also claimed
descent from the clan of Lord Krishna, although various experts have put
alternative theories about their origin.

Some early inscriptions, dated 1078 and 1090, have implied that the
Hoysalas of Mysore were also the descendants of the original Yadava
clan, by referring to the Yadava vamsa (clan) as Hoysala vamsa. But
there are no records directly linking the Hoysalas to the Yadavas of
North India. The founder of the Wodeyar dynasty, Vijaya, also claimed
descent from the Yadu and took on the name Yadu-Raya.

Legends of the cowherd Krishna and his dances with cowherdesses are
mentioned in the Sangam classics. The term Ayarpati (cowherd settlement)
is found in Cilappatikaram. It is argued that the term Ayar has been
used for the Abhiras in ancient Tamil literature, and V. Kanakasabha
Pillai (1904) derives Abhira from the Tamil word Ayir which also means
cow. He equates the Ayars with Abhiras, and scholars treat this as
evidence of migration of the Abhiras to the south in the first century
AD.Many groups and clans claiming descent from the ancient Yadu clan call themselves Yadavs. The major clans among these are:

DialectsThe language of the Ahirs was known as Ahirani in Khandesh, resembling
Marathi. While the Ahirs of Kathiawad and Kachh have a dialect which
resembles Gujarathi. Abhira bhasha is in fact considered to be
Apabhransha. In the ninth century BC, it had become the language of the
people, and was spoken from Saurashtra to Magadh, and it has been proved
that poetry was composed in this language around the sixth century BC.
In addition to the ones above--Gaddi, which is currently the dialect
spoken in Gadderan, on the outskirts of the Chamba and Kangra hills and
Gandi is spoken in some parts of Madhya Pradesh. Abhiri as a dialect has
been recorded by Sanskrit poets such as Bharata and Dandin. The dialect
the people of Ahirwal in Haryana speak has a resemblance to Rajasthan.

Political InfluenceThrough numerous political parties such as the Samajwadi Party,
Rashtriya Janata Dal, Janata Dal (Republic), Janata Dal (Communal) and
Makkal Tamil Desam (Tamil Nadu), the Yadavs have considerable political
influence, especially in the North Indian states of Uttar Pradesh and
Bihar.

Notable Yadavs

Mythology

* LORD KRISHNA* Neminatha, The 22nd Teerthankar of Jains & cousin of Lord Lord Krishna* Vasudeva, father of Lord Krishna* Kartaveerya Arjuna, Emperor of Mahismati, also known as Shasrabahu* Kunti, sister of Vasudeva and mother of Pandavas and Karna* Kansa, a tyrannical king of Mathura, who was killed by Lord Krishna* Ugrasen, the father of Kansa

1 comment:

Yadav History and is an attempt to broadcast the glorious history of Yadav dynasty. Today Yadavs constitutes 20% of India's population and over 3% of the world population. In terms of sheer numbers this translate into 20 crores or 200 millions. The 20% population of Nepal also consists of Yadavs. 11.5% of Indian business is handled by Yadav's. Yadav's have 423 different type of sub-surname. 14.2 % NRI's are Yadav's. Yadav is the official Surname of 43 countries. Yadav's are the largest race in the history of the whole world. Out of 223 countries worldwide, there are only 4 countries including India with over 20 crores or 200 million population. It has been truly said that Yadav's are not merely a community but a "nation" in themselves.They were kings once they r present backward castes but not scheduled caste,even in russia people have surnames yadav.

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I am straightforward but little shy, very kind towards poor and innocent and I am very honest & I like honest people and I am Spiritual and God fearing. Cheerful and Enthusiastic. Ever ready to learn and try out new things.